Anikara no Okurimono
Anikara no Okurimono (兄からの贈り物) is the seventh episode of Crush Gear Turbo. It was originally aired in Japan on November 18, 2001. Synopsis According to the synopsis from the DVD release of the English dub: Kouya begins to worry about his Gear Fighting ability. He meets a classmate of his whose father works at the zoo and gets dragged into an embarrassing Gear Fight with a chimpanzee - and he loses! Can Kouya regain the respect of his teammates? Plot The episode begins with Kouya having a nightmare of his teammates intimidating him for his poor Gear Fighting skills and their Gears destroying Garuda Eagle. The next morning, Kouya could not finish his breakfast and leaves, in which his actions are noticed by his parents. Kouya is then seen sneaking outside the Tobita Clubhouse and overhears his teammates' conversation about his absence. Later, he lies down by the river bank when his classmate, Fuuko greets him. Fuuko's brother, Shingo passes by and meets her before she introduces Kouya to him. Shingo asks Kouya if he knows Yuhya Marino, in which Kouya replies by stating his identity as Yuhya's brother. After Shingo leaves the children, Fuuko invites Kouya to go to the zoo. The latter is so excited to go there that he nearly heads to the wrong direction. At the zoo, Fuuko tells Kouya that she is interested to see chimpanzees since they are intelligent. However, he is only interested in seeing wild animals such as tigers, lions and aardvarks. It turns out that Fuuko drags Kouya to a Crush Gear ring where they meet her father who works as a zookeeper. To Kouya's chagrin, Mr. Nagidori suggests him to be a coach for Q, a chimpanzee that knows how to play Crush Gear. Kouya is surprised in seeing how Q is able to switch its Gear on before he gets nervous. During the first round, Battlehawk and Q's Gear are chasing each other while Kouya and Q humourously engage in an argument. Q's Gear attacks Battlehawk until the latter is tipped upside down. Things do not change at the second round; just as Q's Gear clashes with Battlehawk, the latter is tipped upside down again. Kouya is so shocked with his embarassing loss that the scene cracks and shatters (similar to a mirror glass). He visions himself being mocked by his teammates for losing to a chimpanzee. Kouya even imagines Jirou showing a Crush Gear magazine with Q on the cover as a reference for his "next Gear Fight", and Q starts to laugh at Kouya before everyone follows suit. Back to reality, Kouya tells Fuuko and Mr. Nagidori that he is going to leave the zoo. After that, Fuuko angrily tells her father that he had humiliated Kouya, but Mr. Nagidori has no idea that Q would defeat the boy. Later at La Mere du Marino, Mrs. Marino laughs over Fuuko's story on how Kouya lost to a chimpanzee. Kaoru and Lilika enter the restaurant, and the former meets Fuuko who tells about Kouya's situation to her. Lilika then asks about Kouya's whereabouts to them since he is absent from the clubhouse. Meanwhile, Kouya contemplates in his room and states that he is not talented for Gear Fighting. Suddenly he receives a phone call from Shingo who wishes to show something to Kouya. That night, Kouya meets Shingo at a park and hands out a paper bag which contains Yuhya's training shoes that was stained in blood. Shingo then tells the story behind the shoes. Five years ago, he could not sleep one night so he decided to walk in the park. There, he saw Yuhya's shadow dancing. It turns out that Yuhya was practicing every night to improve his Gear throwing skills despite being exhausted. Shingo also saw Yuhya's feet bruised and bleeding after weeks of non-stop practicing. Yuhya knew that Shingo discovered his secret, so he told Shingo not to tell anyone about it and to hide the training shoes in a safe place. After the incident, Shingo hid the shoes that eventually became his inspiration when confronting his life's trials. Hearing Shingo deciding to throw Yuhya's shoes, Kouya objects by telling that he is the rightful owner of his brother's shoes. Shingo then challenges Kouya to a Gear Fight on the next day and makes a deal that the latter will keep the training shoes if he wins; otherwise the shoes will be thrown away. Later, Kyousuke receives a surprise visit from Kouya who really wants to know about Garuda Eagle. Kyousuke analyzes the Gear and states that it has a unique design of having two shields at each side of the front weapon and has several secret maneuvers. Throughout the night at the Tobita Clubhouse, Kouya practises Garuda Eagle's special skills by trying both his brother's and the spin-type settings. On the next day, Lilika sees Kouya sleeping at the ring until Shingo enters the clubhouse and tells him to wake up for the Gear Fight. At the same time, Kaoru makes a phone call to the other club members regarding the battle, but they are reluctant to go (especially Kyousuke, who says it is none of his business and is Kouya's responsibility). In the first round, Garuda Eagle is easily defeated by Shingo's Gear, Winning Dagger since Kouya uses his brother's setting on his Gear. Shortly after the round Kuroudo, Jirou and Kyousuke arrive at the clubhouse, and the former asks Kouya about the battle. However, Kouya ignores Kuroudo and starts customizing Garuda Eagle. His teammates make different observations for Winning Dagger: Kyousuke thinks that its dash setting increases its speed, Kuroudo thinks that it can defeat its opponent with the spin technique and Jirou finds the Gear's weakness in both of its sides. The three calls Kouya and give various recommendations for Garuda Eagle's settings, but he ignores them. During the second round, both Garuda Eagle and Winning Dagger are colliding with one another, and Kouya's Gear manages to defeat its opponent thanks to its spin wheel settings. Seeing Kouya winning the round, Jirou, Kuroudo and Kyousuke recommend the Gear settings to him. However, Kouya silences his teammates by stating that the battle is his and he wants to deal with it by himself. The beginning of the third round sees Shingo throwing the paper bag containing Yuhya's training shoes to Kouya. Shingo tells Kouya that the shoes are now the latter's and that he has seen the Gear Fighting spirit within him. As Shingo leaves the clubhouse, Fuuko meets him at the entrance and asks on Kouya's whereabouts. She is glad to hear Kouya's victory in the Gear Fight and thanks her brother for it. The episode ends with Kouya going out of the clubhouse and sees the Nagidori siblings walking away. Trivia *This episode is a favorite with the series producer, Naotake Furusato according to an interview."Interview Side B." Sunrise Inc. Retrieved on January 20, 2009. *This episode shows the first time Kouya thinks of Garuda Eagle being destroyed; in the episode's case, it appears in his dream. *It is unknown why Kouya used Battlehawk if he can use Garuda Eagle against Q. *In the English dub, Kouya calls Q as "George" during the first round. The name might be a reference of the titular character from the movie George of the Jungle. *There is a 3D animation of glass shattering after Kouya is defeated by Q in the second round. * The recommendations for Kouya's Gear settings made by Kyousuke, Jirou and Kuroudo are as follows: :: References Category:Episodes (Crush Gear Turbo)